


Leaves

by SpringZero123



Series: Spring Writes Stuff [8]
Category: Coraline (2009), Kubo and the Two Strings (2016), ParaNorman (2012)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-12
Updated: 2020-07-12
Packaged: 2021-03-05 04:35:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,989
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25218616
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SpringZero123/pseuds/SpringZero123
Relationships: Charlie Jones/Mel Jones, Coraline Jones/Wybie Lovat, Kubo (Kubo and the Two Strings) & Agatha Prenderghast, Norman Babcock/Coraline Jones
Series: Spring Writes Stuff [8]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1784281
Kudos: 44





	Leaves

The sun set peacefully from outside Wybie's house, as the wind met his face blissfully while waiting for his best friend. Coraline texted him that she needed someone to talk to, and he's surprised that she's going to him instead of Norman.

You know, Norman. Her supposedly perfect boyfriend. Or as Wybie calls him, 'Mr. Steal Your Girl'.

Wybie shrugged silently to himself, before sighing heavily as another gust of wind blew on his face, making him smile sadly.

He always felt like just a reserve around her, like another person that she can approach whenever she wanted to pass the time. And all this is fine by him, as long as he can still talk to her.

At the 7 years of knowing her as a person, that is the closest thing that he can be for her. A friend.

The horn that had honked loudly from nearby snapped him out from his train of thought, as he looked below him only to see Coraline's car parked in front of his house, making him smile.

She's here. "Finally," Wybie whispered to himself, making his way downstairs, all the way to his front door.

When he opened the door, his heart immediately skipped a few beats. 

"Hey Wyborn," Coraline greeted with that small smile of hers that he truly adores. He had to gulp down the knot inside his throat so that he can reply coherently. 

"H-hey Jonesy, how's it going? Come in, come in," Wybie opened the door wider for her, as she gladly entered his house.

She removed her coat swiftly and hanged it beside the door, before smiling at him brightly. "Nothing much, just hoping for someone to talk to."

The both of them sat on the couch in front of the small TV, and Wybie carefully noted the distance that sat in between them.

"I got you back Jonesy, what is it?" 

Her tired sigh made his heart sink hard down south. "I don't know how to say it, to be completely honest, but I feel like he's starting to forget that I'm still here for him."

That self centered ass, Wybie thought to himself. "What did Norman do? Again?" Wybie asked her carefully, leaning his body towards her because he knows that her voice tends to grow weaker whenever she's upset.

"Well, when I send him texts, he doesn't respond. Whenever I call him, he never picks it up. I update him about everything that has happened to me every single day, but the only thing I know about him is that he's still breathing. And I hate the fact that it has been bothering me more and more these days."

Seeing her in the verge of tears made him want to wrap his arms around her, but he can't. And it's getting to him deep into his nerves. 

"It sounds like you two haven't talked personally in a long time," Wybie said softly, as Coraline nodded her head solemnly in agreement. 

"It's been months. The only thing he told me before leaving is that he's going to be very busy with that stupid 'project' of his. Meanwhile I'm just here, working on fixing the flower shop, but yet I still find time to check on him when he can't."

A tense moment of silence had filled the room for a short moment, before Coraline chuckled bitterly to break that ice. "It's funny, because I always wondered if he still thinks of me the usual way he did before."

Then a waterfall of tears crept its way out of her eyes, as Wybie looked at her sadly. "I feel like, as time passes by, he's slowly seeing me as a person I was to him before."

Wybie raised an eyebrow in confusion. "A secret admirer?"

Coraline breathed out tiredly, smiling bitterly at him. "Not even any closer to that."

That's when she scooted closer to him, reaching for his arm that he had gladly offered, before she rested her head on his shoulder and started sobbing, making him sigh as he placed a hand above hers in mean of comfort.

She's been yearning for that ignorant ass for months and months, and Wybie often wonders how he can even do this to her. 

Does Coraline think often about Norman every second that passes by? Well, yeah. But does he do the same for her? Can be farther than the truth.

"You two should really talk things out. Norman doesn't know anything about this, does he?" Wybie asked her softly, slightly placing his head on hers softly.

Coraline shook her head, keeping her head hidden against his shoulder. "No, no he doesn't."

• • •

After taking her best friend's advice, she decided to give Norman a call again after trying dozens of times earlier that day, with still no response. 

But when she called him after she talked to Wybie, he picked the phone up. Huh. Guess Wybie reminded him that he still has a girlfriend.

"Hello?"

"Hey you, still remember me?" Coraline said with a small scoff, as she can only imagine Norman widening his eyes at her sudden display of attitude.

"CJ, what the heck are you even talking about? Of course I still remember you!"

The scary part of him saying those words is, she doesn't know if he's being sincere or not. 

Coraline scoffed loudly to herself, rolling her eyes tiredly. "Well, you have a very funny way of showing it." How she wished she saw Norman raising his eyebrow at her.

"CJ, what do you mean?" He asked her with a slightly raised tone that she knows all too well. 

A tone he uses whenever he's annoyed and angry at something, and Coraline knows that that specific something, as of this moment, is her.

But getting mad at him through the phone is not making things any better for the both of them, honestly. She sighed to herself, letting that thought linger inside her head.

"CJ? What's wrong?" His voice that came from the phone brought her back to reality. She smiled sadly, even though he can't see it.

"Can you please make room in your schedule? It's really important." Coraline asked quietly.

"Why babe?" Norman asked her slowly.

"I need to talk to you about something."

There was a pause between the line, and she wonders if he was smiling to himself, or if he was frowning at the other end of the line.

"Yeah, sure. I'll tell the crew I'll be leaving early, maybe around 6 o'clock in the evening. Meet me at the bay in a couple of weeks." 

And then suddenly, the call ended as quickly as how he had said those words to her, making her frown.

Coraline didn't even get to say that she loves him. But the scariest part of that thought, is that she doesn't even know if she will ever mean it the way she used to.

• • •

She parked her car at their favorite spot to just hang out and talk, just near the bay. 

Coraline regretted the fact that she had arrived there earlier, since he arrived 10 minutes late than their original time that they agreed on.

Norman is in his classic red hoodie and jeans pair that they both adore so much. He walked towards her car with a small smile, opening the door to the shotgun seat before sitting next to her, placing his hands inside the pockets of his hoodie while scooting closer to her.

"Hey," he said softly, brushing his shoulder lightly against hers to get her attention. 

Coraline turned her head to him with a blank expression on her face, before smiling sadly at him. "That's literally the first time I've heard a clear voice from you in months."

Norman sighed, looking down at the floor to avoid her intense gaze. "I'm really sorry for that, truly."

"Are you?" She questioned him, as he turned his body to face her while straightening up his posture.

"Why do you keep doubting every word I say to you CJ? What's up?" He asked her, knitting his thick eyebrows in frustration.

Coraline returned his hidden glare to him, crossing her arms on her chest. "Seriously? I have been texting and calling you for months and months, with no response whatsoever from you, and now you're asking me 'what's up'?"

He stared at her silently with an unreadable expression on his face, but she's not done telling him her problems just yet. 

"No wonder you have no idea about anything at all," Coraline scoffed, crossing her arms on her chest as she continued glaring at him.

Norman raised an eyebrow at her, as his immediate change of expression had startled her from the inside, but she tried her best to hide it from him. 

He cleared his throat loudly, before shaking his head angrily. "Okay first of all, I read your messages whenever I have the time to do so."

"Does that change the fact that you didn't responded to any of my texts and calls if you have the 'time to do so'?" She argued, making Norman scoff at her with a grimace.

"No, but I had to turn off the notifications on my phone since you have all the time in the world to even text me," he retorted back, breathing out heavily as he glared at her.

Coraline scoffed angrily, rolling her eyes at him. "Oh, well, sorry for caring too much about your well-being."

"And besides, why are you even making a big deal with all these texts and calls? It's not like you even needed me when I wasn't around," Norman stated with a frown on her face, as Coraline gave him a frown. 

"Norman, I literally spent many months without you, don't you have any idea how much I've missed you?"

The silence that followed had made them look into each other's eyes endlessly, trying to find answers but only came back with more questions. One has no idea that a problem even existed between them, the other has tried to fix things, only for it to be broken all over again.

His tired sigh has broken their train of thoughts, as he gave her a frown. 

"What do you still think of this kind of relationship, CJ?" Oh, this one is easy. 

Coraline looked at the ground, sighing to herself. She had spent months thinking of an answer to that question. 

And now, the only thing she can answer to that is... "It's closing, Norman. It's like I don't even know you anymore."

And then, she laughed bitterly. "That is, if you still know who I am to you anymore."

He had moved his body farther away from her, reaching for the door handle beside him, a stern look plastered on his handsome face. 

She knows he's trying to hide that fact from her, but her tears had given away everything that this caused for the both of them.

"I think, this is the part where you say goodbye," Norman said.

"I think this is the part where you leave," Coraline replied. 

Without another word said between them, he had no other choice.

• • •

Wybie is casually playing Classic Tetris on his computer screen when his phone vibrated wildly from beside his table. 

He tried to ignore the call for a brief moment, but when he placed that I-piece on the wrong place, he just dropped his console and picked up the call.

"Hello?" He answered, but it feels like something's not right. The sirens and the sound of panicked shouting from the background unsettled him. 

"Hello? Wyborn Lovat?"

That's not Coraline's voice.

It's her dad's. And his shaky voice sent shivers down his spine.

"Yes, Mr. Jones?" Wybie asked worriedly, standing up from his seat. 

"Oh thank goodness you recognize me young man," Charlie replied, but that didn't made Wybie feel any better. "What's wrong?"

"It's Coraline."

"What happened Mr. Jones?" Wybie asked once again, quickly running downstairs.

"She's here, in the hospital. Her car crashed on the crossroads near the bay. She's currently in the Emergency Room, and we don't know what happened, but we can't access Norman anywhere," Charlie said frantically on the phone, as Wybie made his way to the garage.

"I'll be there in a few minutes Mr. Jones," Wybie said with a small huff as he dropped the call and placed his phone into the pocket of his jeans. He hopped onto his motorbike before quickly starting it's engines.

Damn that asshole. He can't even look after his girlfriend properly. But what's worse, is that Coraline is in terrible danger right now, and he needs to be there for her. 

"I got your back, Jonesy." And with that, he drove quickly to the hospital, hoping that his friend will hang on until he arrives.

• • •

"Coraline Jones? She's in Room 86 in the fourth floor, the hallway to your right," The nurse told Wybie calmly, as he said a quick 'thank you' to the nurse before running to the elevator.

As soon as the elevator's doors closed, he breathed in heavily, closing his eyes as he brought his hands on his face, completely ignoring the fact that there are other people inside with him.

But he couldn't care less, right now the only thing that he wants is for Coraline to be alright.

"Hey," a girl had said from beside him, getting his attention. Wybie turned his head to see who it was, only to be greeted by a young nurse with long black hair, blue eyes, and pale skin.

She has a boy with not that long black hair on a wheelchair, but only this time his left eye, from the looks of it, was recently patched up.

He knows this girl, she looks too familiar to not notice her. "Agatha?" Wybie asked, as the girl beside her nodded. 

"You're Norman's cousin, right?" He asked again, as she smiled at him lightly. "Yeah, but I was wondering, what are you doing here?" Agatha asked him carefully, as Wybie sighed.

"It's Coraline, your cousin's girlfriend."

Agatha gasped worriedly, knitting her eyebrows in concern. "What happened?"

"Her parents told me that she just encountered a car crash, and also the fact that your cousin is not responding to any of their calls or texts with regards to Jonesy," Wybie answered, making him sigh once again.

"Oh, so she's the girl that was recently brought in earlier. She looked like she lost a lot of blood, I heard that her head is not doing too well, but I hope she's okay," Agatha trailed off, making Wybie flinch at the sudden picture that had entered his mind. 

Poor Jonesy...

Luckily, the elevator doors that lead to the fourth floor opened with a small ding, snapping him out from the gruesome picture in his mind.

"Forward," the boy on the wheelchair muttered, making Agatha smile at him. 

"Well, I guess I'll be seeing you," Wybie said with a small smile, as Agatha nodded to him. "I'll try to contact Norman later," she replied softly.

"Aggs, forward!" The boy on the wheelchair exclaimed, as Agatha laughed loudly, pressing the 4th floor button repeatedly. 

"Alright, alright Kubo, chill," Agatha laughed out, before pushing the wheelchair as Wybie joined their exit. 

• • •

He immediately found Room 86, where Coraline is supposed to be resting. Wybie took a deep breath in, before knocking on the door carefully.

There were footsteps from the other side of the door, before it finally opened, revealing one tired Mr. Jones. As soon as his eyes landed on Wybie though, he smiled brightly at him.

"Mr. Lovat, please come in!" Charlie exclaimed, opening the door wider so that Wybie can enter inside the hospital room, as Wybie gladly walked inside.

Giving a glance at her unconscious body laying there on the hospital bed made his heart beat faster, as he was just as nervous as her parents right now.

"What did the doctors say, Mr. Jones?" Wybie asked carefully, as he walked beside the bed, placing a delicate hand above her arm, looking at her worriedly. Charlie smiled lightly at the sight. 

"They say that she should be awake after a few weeks. Her head received the most damage since the people on the scene said that she was driving too fast," Charlie trailed off, as Wybie, along with Mr. and Mrs. Lovat stared at Coraline silently.

Mel looked at Charlie one last time, before nodding her head. "Wybie, we still have to run the flower shop for Coraline," Mrs. Lovat trailed off, as Wybie turned his head to face the two adults.

"I'd be happy to look after her Mr and Mrs. Jones," he said without thinking twice, giving them a reassuring smile. 

Mel smiled at the young man. "Thank you so much, Mr. Lovat."

Wybie smiled. "Anything for the Jones." But what he really meant to say, is that he'd do anything for Coraline.

The two Jones smiled at him, before exiting the room, leaving him and his best friend alone. Wybie sighed worriedly, looking at Coraline with a frown on his face.

If she had gotten into a car accident near the bay, that could only mean that she was near there before the accident.

"Wait," Wybie whispered to himself, still looking at Coraline as he tried to think. By the bay? Coraline told him that her and Norman are supposed to meet by the bay a couple of weeks ago for a talk... 

Unless that talk didn't end according to what Coraline would've wanted.

That's when it clicked. "Norman. That good-for-nothing idiot," he growled under his breath, with his eyebrows knitting in anger.

The door suddenly opened, revealing the guy who got Coraline into this mess in the first place.

Wybie immediately stood up from his seat, marching angrily towards him as his breathing became unsteady. 

Meanwhile, Norman smiled nervously at him. "H-hey, Wybi-!"

"You dingbat!" Wybie cut off his sentence, shoving Norman towards the door, making him land with a loud thud. "What the fuck is wrong with you man!?" He shouted angrily, glaring at him hard.

"Honestly, I didn't know any of this would even happen!" Norman tried to reason with him, placing his hands in front of him in defense.

"No!" Wybie shouted at him, making Norman flinch at the volume of his voice. "You should have been more careful with your words! Now look what happened!"

"I know! And I'm really sorry for all this shit!" Norman argued, his voice struggling to keep itself steady.

"Your sorry won't bring back the blood that Coraline lost because of your stupid excuses," Wybie stated with a low and threatening voice, as he walked back to Coraline's unconscious body laying on the hospital bed.

Violence is never the right way to fix any problem, Coraline told him that herself. And besides, Norman doesn't look like he went there to start any fight with anyone.

As soon as Wybie found a nearby chair, he dragged it beside the hospital bed, and sighed worriedly. 

Norman was a little wary, at first, but then he gathered all the confidence to walk and stand on the other side of Coraline, looking at her sadly.

"I fucked up everything, didn't I?" Norman said in a hushed tone, as Wybie nodded his head in agreement.

"It's a good thing you know," Wybie added, making the other guy across him sigh tiredly.

"You two are good friends, yeah?" Norman asked, as the curly head nodded silently in reply.

"Look," Norman started, placing his hands inside the pockets of his hoodie. "If she wakes up, just tell her I said I'm sorry for all the horrible shit I caused to her life and took her for granted."

"Wait, you're not even going to stay? Not even for her?" Wybie asked with a confused look on his face.

"Dude, she went through a fucking car accident all because of me. I don't think she'll ever want to see the likes of me again," Norman trailed off, placing a hand carefully on her shoulder as he looked at her with a sad smile, before lowering his body to give her a quick kiss on the forehead.

"I'll meet you in another world, love," he whispered, before looking at Wybie with a sad smile. 

"Tell her parents that I'll pay all the bills. That excessive money I earn for that stupid project had almost cost me CJ's life anyway," Norman said, walking towards the doors silently. 

But before he can even open the door, he turned his head to face Wybie once again. Then, he smiled sadly at him. "Also, take care of her for me, I can tell that those eyes of yours can hold her better than I can."

Wybie grimaced at his words, but he tried his best to smile back. "Are you... are you sure that you're fine with all this?"

Norman just nodded silently, and not even a moment after, he already left the hospital room as quickly as he had entered.

• • •

Weeks had already passed, but Wybie still stayed by her side. She's been asleep for a very long time now, but he knows that she's still here with him.

Some other times he had thought of giving up, but he promised to his parents, he promised to her ass hat boyfriend (but at least Norman kept his word of taking care of the bills, even if the money was as high as five figures), and most importantly, he promised to Coraline.

And that thought of her waking up one day, facing him with that innocent face that he loves so much, makes her worth waiting for.

He'd take turns with her parents to stay in order for them to move some of their things inside the hospital room, but Mr. and Mrs. Jones would always leave by night.

Leaving him with her all over again, hoping for her to wake up for another day. The thing is, Wybie is very patient, especially when it comes to Coraline. 

So to pass the time, he'd write all the good memories they have with each other by day when her parents are visiting, then read it to her by night before he goes to sleep himself.

One particular day however, when he was writing about the day she pushed him to the pool when they were just seven, he heard her groan hoarsely from beside him, making him look at her in an instant.

"Jonesy?" He asked silently, as she began to blink her eyes open, making him smile widely at her in relief, for she is finally awake.

Coraline slowly rose from the bed so that she can sit properly, as Wybie only smiled at her. As soon as her eyes landed on his, she raised an eyebrow at him.

"Who are you?" Coraline asked him, as his smile immediately turned into a frown as he heard his heart crack from inside of him.

And then, he smiled once again, thinking that Coraline is only playing a joke on him.

"Jonesy, you're back!" Wybie cheered, throwing his arms around her, but when she immediately pushed him away from her, he felt numb.

"What is wrong with you!?" She screamed, making him flinch as he kept a safe distance from her.

"And you haven't answered my question yet! Who are you!?" Coraline shouted, glaring at him as she held on to her head, her eyebrows knitting tightly as she tried to soothe the sudden pain.

His silence as he stared at her made her gaze on him soften, but Wybie can tell that she's still confused. 

This can't be right. This can't be real. She's here, and she's okay, but she doesn't remember anything?

"You don't remember me?" Wybie asked her silently, as her shocked face answered all his questions. 

"I don't even know who you are," Coraline replied softly.

She doesn't even remember him.


End file.
